Upgrading to a new version of Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) can help your brand stay on the cutting edge, meet consumer expectations, and deliver a best-in-class digital experience to your customers.
However, an AEM upgrade involves many moving pieces, and the business risks can be significant. Custom components may get broken, interrupting critical workflows and disrupting the customer experience. Dev teams sometimes aren’t aligned with the business’s objectives or priorities, leading to confusion and delays.
The good news is that you don’t have to implement an AEM upgrade all on your own. Working with an AEM upgrade partner can help you maximize your ROI while minimizing risk.
How to Choose an AEM Upgrade Partner
An experienced and reputable AEM partner should offer the following:
1. Adobe-Certified Experts
Your AEM implementation team should consist of
Adobe-certified developers, architects, and business practitioners. They can provide you with critical insights and knowledgeable recommendations to help you achieve your objectives, streamline workflows, and improve efficiencies with AEM’s new features.
Select an AEM partner in the Adobe Solution Partner Program, as this indicates that they have the knowledge and experience to leverage the platform. They should also be equipped to implement the most recent AEM offering to ensure that you have the latest tools at your disposal.
2. Hands-On Experience
The ideal AEM upgrade partner should have ample experience working with organizations to implement the latest AEM version. This helps ensure that they can develop the most effective approach to meet your needs.
Ask about the agency’s history of successful implementation projects that they have completed for other clients and their approach to resolving specific challenges. Look for partners with experience in your industry, as they can often share valuable “from the trenches” insights.
3. Implementation Strategy
Your AEM team should be able to tailor an implementation strategy that fits your organization’s unique structure and objectives. The right partner should work with you to identify the best upgrade approach, design a strategy, plan out every stage, and find opportunities to improve efficiency.
The implementation strategy should cover not only coding and technical development but also the “people” side of things in order to facilitate stakeholder buy-in, seamless communications, and organization-wide adoption so you can get the highest ROI.
4. Customization and Integration
Customization and
integration allow you to build an ecosystem of tools designed specifically to meet your needs. Such integrity is vital to a smooth transition when upgrading to a new AEM version.
Your AEM partner should provide recommendations on how you can customize the various components in AEM to improve its usability throughout the organization. They should also have extensive experience setting up AEM integration with other Adobe platforms and third-party software.
For example, AEM integration with
Adobe Analytics and
Adobe Target can help you leverage data and insights to deliver personalized content that will increase the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns.
5. Comprehensive Testing and Rollout Plan
A well-designed testing strategy helps ensure that all of AEM’s critical functional areas are tested and all bugs are fixed before deployment in order to minimize interruptions to workflows and disruptions to the customer experience.
Your AEM partner should also design a rollback strategy that includes information about the AEM backup, technical instruction, communication protocols, and stakeholder contact information. This allows you to return the software to the current state if upgrade requirements aren’t met, so the platform can remain functional with minimal downtime.
6. Post-Upgrade Training
AEM is a complex enterprise software solution, and your marketing team needs to have a thorough understanding of its capabilities and the ability to utilize all new features properly in order to maximize its impact on the business.
Your AEM partner should offer comprehensive training to your employees so they can make the most of the application. This will help optimize your ROI and create meaningful results for your organization.
7. Ongoing Post-Upgrade Support
Marketing technologies, consumer trends, and customer expectations evolve over time. You’ll need additional expertise and assistance after implementation to make sure your AEM configuration is updated periodically to meet changing requirements or objectives.
Choose an AEM partner who not only has the technical capabilities to implement the software but can also provide ongoing development and support to make sure that the platform can grow with your business.
For example, your partner should understand your business objectives and recommend the latest integration to expand your AEM platform’s capability and optimize the results of your latest marketing initiatives.
Successful AEM Upgrade Starts with a Trusted Partner
Working with an experienced and reputable AEM partner is vital to ensuring a seamless AEM upgrade that will equip you with all the latest features configured to meet your needs.
You’ll be able to optimize efficiency, design a plan to ensure a smooth transition, and get the right support to continually evolve the platform so your organization can stay ahead in the fast-changing business environment.
Atypical Digital is an Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) Preferred Partner specializing in helping enterprise brands leverage Adobe’s AEM platform to optimize their platforms for productivity and efficiency, free up IT-related tasks to make teams more productive, and maximize AEM stability and security.
To see how Atypical Digital can help your brand improve its backend foundation to reduce critical errors during AEM upgrades, contact our knowledgeable team of AEM upgrade specialists today! 